Don't believe everything you see when looking at the new scoreboards inside Great American Ball Park.

        The score and pitch count will be accurate. But don't assume the old-fashioned, hand-operated board showing scores from other games is all that old.

Infographic: Elements of the $2 million scoreboard (Mike Royer illustration) | ZOOM |

        That board — embedded in the left field wall — will be an electronic, 21st-century replica of the kind of scoreboards with hanging numbers that were common during the early years of Crosley Field.

        In all, there will be seven scoreboards costing more than $5.5 million in the new stadium. The team is paying for two of them and for new cameras, software and other electronic equipment.

        John Allen, the Reds chief finance officer, said the scoreboards are meant to add some flash — and a little fire — to games. Among the scoreboards in the new stadium:

        • A board in center field dedicated to home run celebrations, which will have a paddle wheel and smokestacks that shoot fireworks.

        • A state-of-the-art video board for replays and fan shots. This will sit next to the main scoreboard in left field, which will be programmable so that lineups, line scores and more can be displayed there. An analog clock, similar to the one on the scoreboard in Crosley Field, will sit atop the main scoreboard.

        • Two long, thin ribbon boards between the middle and upper decks along the first- and third-base lines. These boards will be identical to the two in Paul Brown Stadium that can display video and graphics.

        • A board dedicated to pitch speed and home run distance in left field.

        Russ Jenisch will be in charge of the scoreboards at the new stadium. He also directs the scoreboards at Paul Brown Stadium, where he has a camera crew that essentially provides a broadcast of the game for fans in the stadium.

        A crew of four camera operators and about a dozen running the video board will work the baseball games, Mr. Jenisch said. Although the scoreboards are similar to those in Paul Brown Stadium, the experience will be very different.

        “We are pretty much handcuffed by Major League Baseball rules that say there cannot be motion on any of the video display boards while play is going on,” Mr. Jenisch said. “Football doesn't have those type of rules, so we can replicate a broadcast.

        “But once the batter's in the box, we have to go to still screen. From that standpoint, we'll do everything we can between pitches, outs and innings.”

        The video board — 27 feet tall by 49 feet wide — will feature a high-definition picture, meaning fans will get a good view of the replays no matter where they are sitting or if the sun is shining on the board.

        Mark Steinkamp, a spokesman for video board supplier Daktronics, said the trick to the newer video boards are tiny lights about the size of those on Christmas tree strands.

        Called “light emiting diodes,” they come in red green and blue. When used in combinations of brightnesses, more than 68 billion colors can be created.

        “Brighter is better, and they are continually improving the brightness and color consistency and the visibility from off center,” Mr. Steinkamp said. “So it's getting better and better incrementally for fans.”

        The ballpark is set to open in 2003.

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